Ten Things About... Tulisa Contostavlos

Dannii Minogue quit and of course Cheryl Cole isn't interested in limping back to the UK X Factor, which means that we've got a refreshed line-up of judges to look forward to. Alongside good old Louis Walsh comes Take That songwriter Gary Barlow, Destiny's Child superstar Kelly Rowland and.... N-Dubz singer Tulisa Contostavlos. N-Dubz have amassed quite a following over the last decade, but there are still quite a few people out there who may not recognize Tulisa when she pops up on their screen. To help out, we've collected ten fast facts about our brand-spanking new Nation's Sweetheart.

1. Tulisa was born Tula Paulinea Contostavlos on July 13, 1988 in Camden Town, London, to parents Ann Bryne and Steve (Platon) Contostavlos.

2. She boasts a pretty impressive musical heritage. Mom Anne was in '80s band Jeep with her three sisters, and dad Steve was a one-time member of Mungo Jerry - the group which gave us 'In The Summertime'. Mungo also featured Tulisa's uncle (and bandmate Dappy's dad) Byron Contostavlos. He's the famous Uncle B who the first N-Dubz album is named after.

3. Before her Uncle B stepped in to help her out, Tulisa didn't have the happiest childhood. She had an abusive relationship with her first proper boyfriend as a teenager, triggering anorexia, depression and two suicide attempts. She later said that she "wouldn't take back one bad thing" because those experiences "made me who I am", adding: "Look at me now, how could I complain?" You go girl!

4. Tulisa also spent much of her life looking after her mother Mia, who suffered from manic depression. She explored those years in BBC Three documentary Tulisa - My Mom & Me. Watch a clip of the show below:

5. N-Dubz actually formed as Lickle Rinsers Crew before (understandably!) changing their name to NW1, after their postcode. Their debut single as N-Dubz 'You Better Not Waste My Time' came out in 2006. Their first album followed two years later and peaked at number 11 in the UK charts.

6. Before N-Dubz hit the big time, all of the members including Tulisa appeared in Channel 4's Dubplate Drama. Billed as "the world's first interactive drama series", the show brought choose-your-own-adventure style storytelling to the telly. Tulisa played a girl called Laurissa and was also filmed behind the scenes talking about the band. She also has acting roles in Bulla and cinema feature Suicide Kids coming later this year.

7. Simon Cowell has predicted some rows on the X Factor panel between Tulisa and Louis Walsh, and we have to admit we don't really fancy the Irishman's chances! After getting some grief from a follower on Twitter, Tulisa responded by saying, "I can't stand ur face……ugly f***er aint ya? Feel sorry for ur mother. Ha ha". She added that her comments were "totally acceptable" considering the unpleasant provocation and that she wasn't in the least bit sorry. Miaow!

8. N-Dubz's second album Against All Odds went to number six and follow-up Love.Live.Life almost matched that at number seven, but it's not all been plain-sailing for Tulisa. She was hospitalized with suspected swine flu twice in 2009 before later being diagnosed with exhaustion.

9. Despite snogging a lady in N-Dubz's 'Girls' video, Tulisa isn't actually gay. "I did it on purpose to wind people up," she explained. "If I woke up tomorrow and I was gay I'd have no problem with it. I'd probably quite enjoy it. I'm totally comfortable with my sexuality." She had previously quipped that she was considering hypnotherapy to make her attracted to women because she hates men. "Women treat people so much better in a relationship." Tulisa claimed. "They don't have a d*ck to think for them "